Author and Photographer

The village of Gernrode, at the edge of the Harz mountains, barely shows up on maps. Yet, it is home to a remarkable 1000 year old church. The Margrave of the East March (sounds like something from Tolkien), named Gero, established here, in A.D. 959, a secular women’s abbey. His widowed daughter-in-law, Hathui, was the first Abbess. She ruled the abbey for 55 years.

South Elevation

Gero was diligent in establishing the credentials of the abbey. He obtained sanction from Otto I in 961 and renewed it with Otto II. He also traveled personally to Rome in 963 to obtain Papal sanction. He returned from there with a relic of St. Cyriakus, who as far as I can tell, was an african martyr in the Diocletian persecution of A.D.303.

Construction began with the Apse and Chancel.

East Apse, Chancel and Transept

There were apparently strong connections between this region and Byzantium. The wife of Otto II was from there and their daughter became the second Abbess in 1014. The nave and its arcade were built in the Byzantine style. Note the multi-columned arcade and gallery above the side aisles.

View of Nave from the Gallery of the South Transept

No structure lasts unmaintained for hundreds of years. There was a major restoration in 1859-65. The chancel painting was restored based on traces of 13th century frescoes. It shows Christ seated with with Book of Life. The middle row shows various saints, with Cyriakus in the center. The lower row shows Gero with member of his family. Hattui the first abbess is shown on the lower right.

Frescoes of the East Apse

The ceiling of the church is quite dramatic. A coffered ceiling was removed in the 19th century restoration and rebuilt based on remnants of an earlier ceiling. The nave portrays the apostles and prophets. The chancel ceiling shows angels in paradise.

Chancel Ceiling

Looking west from the chancel steps, we see the west apse and organ loft. The paintings there are from the restoration of 2003-2012. Underneath the organ is the west crypt. The tomb of Gero in the lower center is of 16th century construction.

View to West with Tomb of Gero

One final curiosity is the replica of the Holy Sepulcher dating to the 12th century. It is the oldest and most exact replica in Germany. I presume it was built after people returned from the capture of Jerusalem in 1099. It is an elaborate replica of the tomb they would have seen there.

South aisle with Holy Sepulcher.

The building is still home to a living community. It hosts weekly Catholic and Protestant services as well as concerts. http://www.stiftskirche-gernrode.de

Information in this post was derived from information in church displays and the booklet Stiftskirche St. Cyriakus Gernrode, Verlag janos Stekovics 2013

The initial impression of Quedlinburg at the train station is not overwhelming. But the image above is not at all representative of the town.

Quedlinburg is in the latter stages of a massive restoration begun in the 1980s. There are 1000 year old churches and the most original timber frame houses of any city or town in Europe. The centerpiece of town is the Schlossberg, the site of a women’s abbey founded in the 900s. It is dominated by the 900 year old church of St. Servatii.

The church is open for tours and includes a crypt and a church treasure that was lost for decades after WWII and discovered in Texas in the possession of the family of an American soldier. The building itself is a treasure. It has detailed carvings on the capitals and on a frieze that runs underneath the upper windows. The arcade is an unusual configuration with a pair of columns between rectangular piers.

There is a tower on the western edge of town, the Steinkierker Turm, that provides a nice overlook. When we first went up to it, we thought it was locked as there is a massive steel turnstyle like you sometimes find at sporting venues. However, it is unlocked by dropping a 1 euro coin in a slot.

The church on the left is the Marktkirche St. Benedickt. As with many churches it was built in stages. The photo below show that the center of the nave and the center of the chancel are misaligned by a couple feet. This happens too often for me to believe it is merely the result of mis-measurement as some maintain. It took some clever stonework to make the two sections meet in any event.

This statue of King David was once one of the columns supporting the organ loft.

The Rathaus is the main feature of the market square. Much of the building dates to the 14th century. The tower on the left was added in the 15th. Further renovation took place in the 17th and 19th centuries.

There are about 1400 timber frame houses in Quedlinburg, some of which date to the 1300s. Most have been beautifully restored. The ones below are in one of several plazas that dot the town.

Many houses have inscription on the beam just above the ground floor. The two below say:

In 1631 Gert Muller and his wife, Dorothea, had this house built.

1577, Merten Hevener, In God’s might, I have built.

We met a man whose friend bought one of these houses in the 1980s for 40 East German Marks, just a couple Euro in today’s funds. It’s worth over a million now. There are still some houses available for restoration like the one below. You might not get quite the same deal though.

The plaza below was created by clearing buildings damaged in WWII. The Marienkirche, on the left, dates to the 12th century, though it has been severely modified over the years.The pink pipes on the right are part of a system for removing groundwater that leaks into excavations. Berlin after all was built on a marsh.

The Marienkirche is still used as a church. Its rather plain interior reflects the Protestant tradition. The Evangelische church, the publicly supported merger of Lutheran and Calvinist churches, has services on Sunday mornings and the Anglican church uses it in the evenings.

Nearby the Nikolaivierteil is a pseudo-medieval area reconstructed under the DDR. It was once the center of the city. The Nikolaikirche for which the quarter is named was closed in 1939 for renovation, but reduced to a shell during the war. It has been restored, but is now in use as a city museum and for concerts. Many of the artifacts in the museum relate to its former life as a church.

The arches in the vaults are painted differently in various parts of the church. The nave is green and red. Two chapels on either side are blue and orange (we were told those are the colors of Mary). The chancel is gray and red.

Most reminders of the national socialists in Berlin have been deliberately obliterated. However, the Olympic Stadium, built for the 1936 Olympics is still in use as a sports and concert venue. A very fine roof has been added. The exterior facade is built of limestone rather than concrete.

Charlottenburg Palace is the largest palace in Berlin. It dates to the early 1700s and is named after the first queen of Prussia.

There are extensive gardens and a tame forest. In the back of the property is the Belvedere. A sign at the building indicated it was built as a private retreat for one of the kings. I guess you might call it his man-cave.

Berlin is a vibrant, youthful city. Images from 1945 show a city nearly flattened. Even historic landmarks were mere shells. Then the communist period split the city in two. Since then the city has been completely rebuilt, often in ultramodern fashion. A few clear reminders of the unfortunate past are preserved as encouragement to never let those things happen again.

Cranes all over the city signify economic development. The crowded cafes along the river are filled with people from all over the world. This is the heart of Germany, but English, the lingua franca, can be heard in many different accents.

The Berliner Dom, severely damaged in the war, has been elaborately restored.

In the crypt are entombed many of the Prussian Kings, Queens, and nobility from the 1700s until the first World War.

Entry to the Cathedral includes the opportunity to climb the steep stairs to the rotunda for panoramic views of the city. This image includes the matching towers of of the Deutscher Dom and Französische Dom at the Gendarmenmarkt.

The tower in this view, which is visible from most of the city, is the Fernsehenturm, or TV tower, built by the communists. I like the confrontation between it and the statue of Moses holding the tables of the Law.

The Brandenburg gate is an iconic symbol of Berlin and Germany. The Berlin wall once stood right across the center of this view, blocking the gate. Now it is a pedestrian way and often the scenes of public gatherings such as holiday celebrations, large screen viewing of football matches and, often, demonstrations.

Speaking of the wall, very little of it remains. There is a memorial along Bernauer Strasse with displays, audio commentary and a portion of the fortification, for that is what it was. One of the audio clips from an East German General explained how the wall was built to ensure the security of East Berlin, a transparent lie. It was actually built to keep people from escaping to the West. An interesting excavation exhibit explains how many tunnels were dug in this area for just that purpose. This is what an East Berliner might have seen if they were brave enough to look over the inner wall into the no-mans land.

In 1989 to 1990 it took months to dismantle the entire wall. This section was appropriated by a number of artists who began painting scenes depicting the joy of their new found freedoms. There is also a lot of ordinary graffiti. At present there is an attempt to clean up and preserve some of the original work.

This image, signed by Birgit K. shows a car of East German manufacture (Trabant) breaking through the wall. I saw a photo of this painting in an art market taken when it was defaced with scrawled names and other things. They did a nice job of cleaning it.

Here’s a photo of a real Trabant in non-standard paint. One can rent them and drive around town.

The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial church was built in memory of the king who died in 1888 (not the WWI Wilhelm). The church was destroyed in WWII, leaving only the foyer and damaged tower. Rather than tear it down, the tower was preserved and a new church was built. The tower is nicknamed der Hohle Zahn, in English, The Hollow Tooth.

Here is a view of the interior of the new building.

One last symbol of a revived Berlin is the Reichstag, the home of the German parliament. This was left a hollow shell after the war. The glass rotunda, which is just visible in this image was designed by an Englishman, a sign of European reconciliation.

Before planning a visit to the Minster at Freiburg, I knew two things about it: the spire is regarded as the most beautiful of Gothic spires, and the four organs sound magnificent. There is a wonderful quadraphonic recording of E. Power Biggs playing the 4 organs simultaneously. The sound reverberates long after the organist has released the keys. A similar visual reverberation lingers in my memory long after my visit earlier this year. The history of this church is available from many websites and books, but being there in person is a completely difference experience to reading about it.

There is at once a sense of age and freshness about the church that invites examination and investigation of details. Though it was built, and rebuilt in stages over several centuries it was completed during the Gothic era and thus retains the elegance of the age without too many distracting emendations of later times.

Time plays havoc with these monuments however and they are in constant need of maintenance. I had the misfortune to see the spire covered in scaffolding. The spire is undergoing a major renovation, including replacement of several massive cornerstones that bear the enormous weight of the, only-apparently, delicate structure.

The church was begun in the Romanesque style in the early 13th century. The chancel, transepts and part of the nave had already been finished when it was decided to complete the church in the Gothic style. The chancel and transepts were initially kept as is, and the nave as we see it today was completed in the Gothic Style. Afterwards, most of the original Romanesque structure was replaced in a late Gothic style. The more complex and higher vaulting in the present chancel was the result.

Nave looking eastHigh Gothic Chancel

Below is a view of the nave from the choir. One organ is in the loft at the rear and another on the upper right-hand wall. The second photo shows an organ in the north transept. The fourth organ is behind the choir. All four can be played from the console in the lower left of the first photo below.

In the north aisle, one chapel contains this life sized depiction of the Last Supper. The figures are in stone carved by Franz Xaver Hauser in 1806.

The St. Nicholas chapel is the oldest portion of the church above ground. The round arches and carving are indicative of its Romanesque origin. It is easily overlooked because it is used primarily as a passageway from the south transept to the south aisle of the chancel.

Blind arcade in the Nicholas chapel.

The exterior view of the south transept shows the round arches and flat aspect of the Romanesque construction. The cock tower, as it is called, partially visible at the right, is Romanesque to the second tier of windows. The upper stories are later, Gothic, construction. The porch is more recent but was completed with round arches. There are numerous details on the exterior indicative of the various stages of construction. The flying buttresses on the nave (first photo below) extend from the wall to the pier in a solid arch. The later choir side (second photo below) has very delicate buttresses by comparison.

Gothic windows and buttresses of the nave.High Gothic windows and buttresses of the chancel.

There are many interesting details in the exterior carvings. A number of the carvings have been replaced with replicas over the years. The flowers on the main tower were a nice touch. They were not there on my first visit but showed up a day or two later. The central door under the tower has colorful and detailed carvings.

There are dozens of chapels, wonderful windows and many more carvings and furnishings. I hope to return some day for a more thorough visit.

Some of the information in this blog was derived from “The Minster at Freiburg im Breisgau” 4th edition, by Heike Mittmann, Kunstverlag Josef Fink, 2012.

Walking down Maximillianstrasse in Speyer for the first time is dangerous. The eye is drawn so powerfully to the massive block of the west face of the Cathedral (Dom) that one is apt to collide with an oncoming pedestrian or bicycle. The alternating courses of red and yellow sandstone make the broad front seem even wider than it is. There is symmetry, rhythm and balance to the main face of the church. But the weathered roughness of two plain, red towers and a cupola rises behind, photo-bombing the finer detail of the main face.

I suppose that is why so many writers complain of the west front which was re-built in the 1800s. There is nothing wrong with it in itself, IMHO, but it conflicts with the 1000 year old feel of the rest of the church.

It is not the case however that the rest has survived unaltered. In 1689 the church burned, the western half nearly leveled, and it was not restored until about 70 years later. That first reconstruction though was fairly true to the original building and it takes a close look to find the boundary between the 11th/12th century original and the 18th century repairs.

Circumambulating the church, one is impressed by the length, 134m, the long rows of windows and arcades and the essential unity of style. Even the copper roof complements the red sandstone. Surrounded by parkland, it is relaxing to take some time doing this. Apart from the sacristy on the southeast corner, Speyer did not acquire the gothic additions that its siblings at Mainz and Worms did. Or rather, those it did acquire perished in the 1689 fire. Thus there is a stronger sense of unity and integrity here.

The square towers at the east end are the oldest structures, dating to the early 11th century. They are constructed of smaller, rougher stone than the rest of the church.

We enter from the west. The nave is very well lit. When the clerestory was updated in about 1125, the windows were unusually large and only superseded in size and luminance by Gothic construction. Also unusual for a Romanesque church are the tall half cylinder columns that were added in the early 12th century to support the vaults. They create a strong vertical element that draws the eye upward as effectively as the long arcade draws the eye toward the sanctuary.

There is a large-scale rhythm created by the twelve lower level arches, triforium level paintings, clerestory and vaults. As you move around the church, into the aisles and even to the crypt, the regular division of space and round arches create a harmonious whole. In the images above, taken to the east and west respectively, one can identify the demarcation between the original work and the 18th century reconstruction. On the left, the nearest transverse arch is entirely pink stone indicating it is part of the reconstruction while the farther arches alternate yellow and pink. On the right the closest several piers are mostly yellow stone from the early building while the farther pink sections in the west are from the reconstruction. The organ was installed in 2011.

The exterior of the eastern apse is built of finely finished ashlars, but the interior is built of rougher stone and the courses are not quite level. I suspect the reason was that it was easier and cheaper to build with small stones and not finish them smoothly if they intended to plaster and paint the wall. It could represent an economic decision rather than a skill deficit on the part of the early builders.

The crypt is the largest Romanesque crypt in the world. There are seven altars, a chapel and tombs of 8 German emperors from the 11th through 13th centuries, including Rudolf I, the first king of the Habsburg dynasty.

All visitors should climb the tower, where I received a bit of unexpected cultural education. A young guide was happy to chat about the view, cathedral, town and historical events. I asked him about the French invasion of 1689, the attendant fire and destruction. He earnestly responded that “we don’t say French, we just say foreign army. We are all friends now.” Message received. He does not want anyone to think he holds any modern person responsible for something that happened in the past.

The prospect from the top is spectacular. One can see the roof and towers up close with the backdrop of the Rhine on the east and a view over the town with the mountains of the Palatine Forest to the west.

There is much more that could be said about this special place but that will have to wait for another time.

What makes a restoration successful? Must it be a faithful reproduction of the original? How does one restore a church built 700 years ago that went through many modifications and then was nearly completely destroyed? What if little is known about the original furnishings or paintings? What if artifacts from any relevant period are rare or extinct? Perhaps it is easier just to do something completely modern. There is no simple answer.

St. Stephan’s Church of Mainz is a church that must have presented such a conundrum, but the answer turned out to be quite satisfying. The unique restoration there is at once modern, conveying an important message to today’s world and yet compatible with the historical architecture and sensibilities.

The church was founded in the 10th century by Archbishop Willigis, who also was the builder of the initial phase of the Mainz cathedral. It stands on a hill on the western side of the Old City. The present Gothic structure replaced the original building between about 1290 and 1340. The walls and piers however are all that remain of that church. An explosion in 1847 and several air raids in WWII gutted the church and adjacent cloister. Many historic furnishings are removed at that time. Since then the church has been in a nearly continuous state of restoration.

The most remarkable aspect of the restored church lies in the windows. Marc Chagall was engaged to create them in 1973 when he was nearly 90 years old. Collaborating with with Charles Marq, a long time associate, and Klaus Mayer, the parish priest, he created a distinctly modern set of windows that harmonize perfectly with the 700 year old building. Chagall was Jewish and desirous to provide a work that would heal the wounds of the war and bring Jews and Christians closer together. The result is a set of windows that demonstrates the reliance of Christianity on the history and writings of ancient Israel and celebrates the shared heritage of creation. The windows in the apse are the focal point, depicting scenes from creation, the lives of Abraham, Moses, David and others. The booklet written by Klaus Mayer waxes quite poetic on the windows.

Beyond the obvious, what struck me was the compatibility of the windows with the Gothic style. Though not geometrically regular, there is a balance to the design that mirrors the balance of the building. The flowing curves and sharp points echo the flow of the multi-shafted piers and pointed arches. The blues lend a peaceful atmosphere and complement the red sandstone. The impact is facilitated by the height of the aisles, which equals that of the central nave and all the windows can be viewed from any location by turning around.

Chagall originally engaged to provide the windows in the apse, but apparently became so interested in the project that he continued to work on additional windows for the transepts and aisles until his death in 1985. He left sufficient instructions for his associate, Charles Marq to finish the remaining windows. Thus the entire set of windows constitutes a unified whole.

The organ was being played as we visited, filling the building with sound. The adjacent window cast the entire area in a blue glow.

The cloister adjoining the church is striking for its intricate vaulting and its leaning walls. Changes in the flow of groundwater over the years have compromised the foundations. Fortunately modern techniques for injecting concrete into the foundation and other modern measures have strengthened the vaults from above.

Throughout the history of Israel, they were instructed to erect memorials and institute festivals to remind themselves of their heritage. St. Stephan’s church functions as such a reminder to our age.